Karate & Taekwon-do Difference?

Question

What is the difference between Karate and Taekwon-do? I know that Taekwon-do is Korean and Karate is Japanese, but both seem to be the same.

I currently take taekwon-do, and some of my friends take karate, but neither one of us peoples seems to know the difference.

Answer 1

Karate or karate-dō ( karate-dō?), is a martial art developed from indigenous fighting methods from the Ryūkyū Islands,Chinese kempo, and classical Japanese martial arts. It is known primarily as a striking art, featuring punching, kicking, knee/elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques, but grappling, joint manipulations, locks, restraints/traps, throws, and vital point striking are taught with equal emphasis, depending on the school. A karate practitioner is called a karateka.

Taekwondo (also, Tae Kwon Do, Taekwon-Do, or Tae Kwon-Do) is a martial art and combat sport originating in Korea. Taekwondo is the national sport of South Korea and sparring, kyeorugi, is an Olympic sporting event. In Korean, derived from hanja, tae means to destroy with the feet; kwon means to strike or smash with the hand; and do means "path", "way". Hence, taekwondo is loosely translated as "the way of striking with hands and feet".

Taekwondo's popularity has resulted in the divergent evolution of the martial art. As with many other martial arts, taekwondo is a combination of combat technique, self-defense, sport, exercise, entertainment, and philosophy.

Although there are great doctrinal and technical differences among public and private taekwondo organizations, the art in general emphasizes kicks thrown from a mobile stance, using the leg's greater reach and power to disable the opponent from a distance. In sparring, turning, front, reverse turning and side kicks are often used, as well as the backfist and reverse punch; advanced kicks include jumping, spinning, sliding, and skipping kicks, often in combination. Taekwondo training often includes a system of blocks, punches, and open-handed strikes and may also include various take-downs or sweeps, throws, and joint locks, though it generally does not emphasize grappling.

Answer 2

Hey chinmusi ("I took Karate for a couple of years but I never took Taekwon-do. My sensei described one of the differences between them. He said in Taekwon-do, they do many of their kicks higher, above the shoulders or even above head level. They raise their feet up high to generate speed and power for heel strikes. They bring their legs down hard like an axe.")
just wondering what type of karate do you do because I actually do karate and we learn all those kicks you mentioned. My senpai and senseis are always encouraging head/above head level kicks.
I have heard that karate has 'reformed' and one point that was mentioned was that there has been more leg work in the past few years.

Answer 3

I took Karate for a couple of years but I never took Taekwon-do. My sensei described one of the differences between them. He said in Taekwon-do, they do many of their kicks higher, above the shoulders or even above head level. They raise their feet up high to generate speed and power for heel strikes. They bring their legs down hard like an axe.

Karate is more direct strikes and it's easier for older or less athletic people . Sensei would say that a properly executed Karate kick to the knee was just as effective as any other kick and much easier to master and to use even in street clothes.

Answer 4

True karate is older than TKD. Karate is a martial art.
TKD is sport ( the national sport of Korea actually).
TKD was invented when Japan occupied Korea and the Koreans saw karate and invented something like it because the Japanese would not allow them to train.
Prior to all this happening the Koreans actually had traditional martial arts but they are not popular like TKD.

I am saying one style is superior to another. They are just different. The quality of a martial artist depends on the quality and frequency of the training, not the style being trained in.

Answer 5

I'll skip all the long history, etc.

Basically, TKD focuses more on the kicks and has high-flying arial techniques. It is more for the people who like to jump high, spin fast, like to fight using the feet more than the hands (although hands are still used), and wants to combine all of the above together into one move.
In olympic and sport stye TKD blocks are not used often because a hard kick to the arm, wrist, or hand can cause serious injury.

Karate is a martial art that focuses more on the hands and on the ground fighting. It is known primarily as a striking art. The stances also tend to be much deeper than in TKD.

Neither one is better than the other. It is just a mater of personal preference. Some people don't want to do a lot of high kicks and jumping and spinning techniques, so they choose Karate.
Some people prefer not to fight with their hands and like how many of the techniques in TKD are physically strenuous and challenging (like me).
It all boils down to personal preference.

Answer 6

No doubt the koreans use a form of close quarters for their troops but anything you see in a western dojo isn't it.

Mac 1 hull listed all the reasons it wouldn't be used in combat .Try that tournament crap in a rice paddy a dense jungle up to your ankles in desert sand or a feild full of mortar shell pits you get killed.

The idea of war is to kill the enemy not impress him with your form.People who say tkd bjj karate kung fu etc as we are taught these arts are war effective have never been in a kill or be killed situation.A situation no matter what you know or can do he has to kill you or maybe you think a judge is going to jump out of the bushes and award you a point .
Men have been shot stabbed and still won the fight and not by doing any hokey tkd kicks.

Answer 7

Tae Kwon Do is a Korean art. It is made up of mostly kick with some strikes. There are many forms of karate. It is the Japanese art of striking and kicking. Judo is a Japanese art> It is a gappling art. It also uses chokes and joint locks for advanced ranks Kick boxing is made up of boxing with some kicks. If you are reffering to Muay Thai, then it is from Thailand. There is no best art. There are many more that what you listed. I don't think no one person knows all of them. You have to find out what iterest you the most. Visit some schools. Take some trial classes. Then use that information to determine which school and instructor is best for you.

Answer 8

There are subtle but distinct differences.

TKD was developed in 1950 as a style tailored for the modern combat infantryman wearing heavy boots, carrying a rifle with both hands, and toting a rucksack. TKD's main purpose is to use the strongest part of your body (legs) against the weakest part of your opponent's (head & neck); therefore, TKD was designed to deliver devastating kicks to the helmet snapping the neck in one blow.

There is only one style of Tae Kwon Do. And Tae Kwon Do teaches no weapons usage at all.

Karate was invented in Okinawa in the mid-1600s heavily based on a style of Chinese Kung fu. Karate was originally designed for the Okinawan peasant to defend against the Japanese Samurai.

There are several styles of Karate each emphasizing kicking and punching to various degrees.

Karate has both a soft style and hard styles (while TKD is a very hard style). And all styles of Karate teaches weapons usage.

Tae Kwon Do uses a 'canterlever' approach to throwing its kicks, over-extends its kicks somewhat, and has a sliding forward and sliding backwards kick somewhat lacking in Karate.

In the upper level black belt ranks of Tae Kwon Do they do away with blocking entirely and simply punch or kick everything thrown at them: i.e. Punch the punch or Kick the kick.

Karate is a bit more versatile than Tae Kwon Do as Karate can be used in almost any environment, while Tae Kwon Do is more specialized to be used while wearing full combat equipment.

Answer 9

TKD is not Korean. It is originally Shorin Ryu adapted by the Koreans. Those forms originated in Okinawa.

General Choi learned from Funakoshi and some other Korean in Japan. He is the one who coined the term Tae Kwon Do.

Most of what is taught today is newly made up stuff.

Answer 10

Taekwon-do and karate are no diffierence at all because Taekwon-do came from shotokan karate and shotokan karate came from matsumara orthodox, matsumara orthodox came from matsumara seito, seito came from matsumara ryu and then kobyashi, matsuyabashi, shubayshi, sotobasyhi and then Shorin-Ryu Karate.